Consulting · Problem Discovery · Mobile App

Baesh

Baesh helps people meet others for activities nearby. New users were getting lost before they ever saw the app. I was brought in to understand the sign-up flow and make the start easier.

My role

UX Consultant

Methods

Cognitive walkthrough, behavioral map, wireflow

Focus

Registration & onboarding

Status

Recommendation delivered, implementation and testing pending

In short

Problem

14 screens of registration and onboarding before users could see a single activity, without ever explaining what Baesh is.

What I did

A step-by-step walkthrough as a new user, a behavioral map of what people do, think and feel, and a redesigned flow with a rationale for every screen.

Recommendation

Show the value first: a 3-screen wizard, then the feed. Ask for an account only when someone wants to join an activity.

My role in this project

What I owned

Expert analysis of the existing product (cognitive walkthrough)
Behavioral map of the sign-up flow
Recommendations and the proposed wireflow

Must stay in the flow

Privacy and consent
Age confirmation (18+)
Registration moved to the moment users join an activity

Not yet validated

Implementation and business decisions are up to the Baesh team
Usability testing with new users is still pending

01 · Walkthrough

14 steps through the sign-up as a brand-new user.

I went through every screen as a brand-new user and noted each moment of doubt, confusion or frustration.

1234567891011121314Feed

14 screens before a new user sees a single activity. Friction grows with every phase.

01 · Start & email

No idea what the app does.

Legal text firstSign up or log in?Why my email?

02 · Verification

Errors that don't explain.

Code length hiddenTimer freezes“Invalid”, but why?

03 · Profile

Personal data before any value.

Who sees my name?Date picker resets the dayNo reason given

04 · Onboarding

Still unclear after 8 steps.

“Almost done”, but it isn'tSwipe goes the wrong wayWhich crew?

05 · Permissions

Asked for without a reason.

NotificationsLocationBefore seeing anything

02 · Behavioral map

What users do, think and feel at every step.

I mapped the 14 stages of the original flow. The “thinks” row tells the story better than any metric:

“Just with one click, it seems that it will be fast.”

“I want to explore the page, but it keeps asking me questions.”

“I have to swipe to start, but to start what exactly?”

“Why do I have to accept messages? I don’t even know yet if I like the app.”

“Maybe I should just close this app. It feels like an endless questionnaire.”

Behavioral map of the Baesh registration process — Behavioral map of the original sign-up: stages, actions, thoughts and feelings, from optimism to frustration.

03 · Diagnosis

Three root causes.

Too long

14 screens of registration and onboarding before users reach the feed.

No value shown

The flow never explains what Baesh actually does.

No “why”

Name, birthday, notifications and location are requested without a reason, which creates distrust.

04 · Recommendation

A 3-screen wizard: value first, one question at a time.

Instead of 14 screens, three. Each screen shows what Baesh offers and asks for only one essential piece of information, with a short reason why. Interests and profile setup are deliberately left out: users should explore the app first.

Proposed 3-screen onboarding wizard for Baesh — The proposed wizard: value, location with a reason, age confirmation.

Wizard 1

Show the value

“Meet people. Do things together.” The first screen finally explains what Baesh is: discover activities nearby and find people to join you.

Wizard 2

Location with a reason

The screen says why location is needed: to show activities nearby. Users can choose between exact and approximate location. People who understand why data is used are more willing to share it.

Wizard 3

Age check

For compliance, users confirm they are 18 or older in a single, clear step.

05 · Feed before account

Let people find something they want, then ask them to sign up.

Feed: users browse activities without logging in. A “Today / Tomorrow / Other date” filter helps them find something for the right day, because I noticed users had to scroll through everything to find activities for tomorrow. (This feed issue is an observation, not yet backed by data.)
Create your own: “Can’t find the right activity? Start your own.” is now visible directly in the feed.
Activity detail: before login only the city and district are shown. The exact meeting point comes after joining. The host gets more visual weight and their past events build trust.

06 · Sign up when it matters

Registration at the moment users want to join.

The user taps “Join Lina”, and only now is an account needed. At this point they already understand why it’s worth it, which reduces friction and distrust when sharing personal data.

Sign in with email or phone or, preferably, with Google, placed within thumb reach.
With social sign-in, email and profile picture are passed on automatically and don’t need to be asked again.

Key decision for Baesh

Should Baesh request the user’s gender from Google?

Advantage

Stricter access control for “women only” events, with the option to change it later.

Disadvantage

What about people who are non-binary or simply don’t want to share their gender?

My conclusion: this is a business decision. Baesh has to choose between trusting users to set their gender themselves and having more control to guarantee safety at “women only” events. It also has to define how those events work for non-binary users.

07 · The right moment

Ask for permissions and profile details when they make sense.

Confirmation: the user sees they’ve joined the event and that it was added to their calendar.
Notifications now, not at the start: right after joining, the reason is obvious: “Of course I want updates if Lina changes the location.” (If Baesh needs reminders earlier, this step can move depending on priorities.)
Profile after the first event: “How was Gallery Crawl with Lina? Add your interests to get matched with similar activities.” This uses the positive moment as motivation. Interests can also be learned from taps and filters.

Proposed Baesh flow from feed to activity detail, sign-in and confirmation — Wireflow: feed → activity detail → sign-in only when joining → confirmation and notification request.

Status

Recommendation delivered.

Implementation and usability testing with new users are still pending. The next step is to validate whether value-first onboarding reduces drop-offs during sign-up.